Highest paid auto CEO: world record set by Mary Barra (VIDEO) DETROIT, MI, USA--General Motors (NYSE:GM) CEOMary Barra,who in 2014 became the first woman to lead a major automaker, earned $22.6 million in 2016, thus setting the new world record for the Highest paid auto CEO, according to theWorld Record Academy.Photo: Mary Barra, CEO of GM. General Motors CEO Mary Barra earned more than any auto CEO in the world. Barra, who in 2014 became the first woman to lead a major automaker, earned $22.6 million in 2016. Photo:General Motors(enlarge photo)The Guinness World Records world record for the Highest paid dancer was set by Michael Flatley (USA), the star of Lord of the Dance, who earned $1.6 million (£1 million) a week for his Irish style dancing at the peak of the show's success. This included profits from ticket, video and merchandise sales.

Guinness World Records also recognized the world record for the Highest annual earnings for a basketball player, set by LeBron James (USA), who earned an estimated $77 million (£52.7 million) between June 2015 and June 2016, according to Forbes magazine, making him the top-paid basketball player of the year. Last year was the first that Barra's pay was tops in the industry, excluding her 2015 retention bonus, according to CNN Money.

Barra's total compensation for 2016 was $22.6 million, down from $28.6 million a year earlier. The company said the difference reflected a one-time award of nearly $11.2 million in stock options in 2015 that were given to top executives as retention bonuses.

In 2016, Forbes magazine namedMary Barrathe "World's Most Powerful Woman in Business" and number five among the "World's 100 Most Powerful Women." In 2016, Barra was ranked first for the second consecutive year on Fortune magazine's list of the "50 Most Powerful Women in Business." In 2014, she was named to Time magazine's list of "The 100 Most Influential People in the World."

GM had a good year in 2016, selling a record 10 million cars globally despite a slight drop in U.S. auto sales. The company also posted a record operating profit of $12.5 billion, up 16%. Only seven years ago, GM suffered through a federal bailout and bankruptcy.